Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-06-04
SCENES IN NEW YORK.
Pen Sketches from Cummingx, md
HALLS PortGolio.

NEW YORK AT LrNcH-REsrkuR,Nrs WHERE ruor.
SANDS OF people EAT pAILy-THE GREAT CITY AT
THE DAWN OF sUMMER-THE CHANGE THAT CONES
IN ONE NIGHT.
Special Correspondence of TIE EVENING sr.a.
NEW YORK, June 3. - Nothing fmpresses q
Stanger more with an idea OF the vastness OF New
York than the scenes from midday 10 = O'Clock IN
the afternoon at the great feeding places where
the multiudes take their luncheon. The sights at
the O O'Clock dinner hour and at midnight, when
the night workers dine, are almost as Impressive.
Breakfast In nearly all the great eating places is
very tame affair az 10 the number OF customers.
The great mass Of humanity In the metropolis
doesn't appear to the stranger TO breakfast at ALL
AT IL O'Clock, however, the appetites OF the half
million and more workers In the heart OF the city
and the soc, 900 transients who are In New York
every day begin TO assert themselves and the rush
begins Five thousand well dressed men besiege
the rotunda OF the Astor House and struggle TO
pre-empt the high stools at the lunch counters.
Men stand behind the seats OF those who are eating
and wait quarter OF an hour for the fortunate
cupant OF seat TO lnish his luncheon. The shouts
OF walters calling out their orders blend with the
noise OF the conversation or the hundreds at the
tables, and the confusion is anything but pleasant
day in the comparative quiet OF a dining room.
The average New York businessman claims to eat
light luncheon at midday, but the gallons OF
clam chowder and the dozens or great roasts carved
on the lunch counters and served TO customers
are evidence that they eat pretty heartily even ut
THE LUNCHEON HOUR.
One nos very extensive dining-room on Fulton
street, which caters TO o cheaper class OF trade,
feeds 1000 people day, and 1000 OF these eat at
the luncheon hour. The average cost OF their
meal IL 25 cents. Most OF them are clerks and
employees ut limited wages. Nearly every day the
proprietor Of the place has to contend with dead
beat. Last week one OF the fraudulent fraternity
called at the eating house above mentioned, ate
an expensive meal and ran out OF the restaurant
without paying: Two walters pursued him. He
lodged In and out OF saloon on the opposite side
OF the street, and one waiter, In attempting TO
overtake him, ran into costly plate glass win
dow and broke It. He finally caught his man,
and the other waiter ran up and struck at the
dead beat, who lodged and let the blow land In
the face OF the waiter who had caught him. The
fraud escaped, but was again captured and pro-
fessiona slugger who is friend OF the restaurant
Keeper, attempted TO punish The captured man,
who again lodged and let the blow fall on spec
and badly hurt. Everybody rushed TO the latter's
rescue, the fraud escaped, and when the excite
ment had subsidized three witnesses OF the melee
found that they mad been robbed OF their gold
watches by pickpocketS
FEEDING ZOO DAY.
On vesey street is one OF the most profitable
restaurants In the world. Every day 1000 per-
sons eat there, the majority OF them at the mid
day meal, and each year the proprietors divide
hour In the year. and the rush at the early hour OF
o'clock In the morning, when the traders In
washington Market come In for their breakfasts,
Several eating houses in the vicinity OF the
Stock Exchange, on Wall street, do a tremendous
business, and no surprise is manifested when q
Spectator, who has been lunching on soft-shell
crabs at so cents and a small bottle OF champagne
at $l.15 goes over to the lunch counter and takes
a !O-cent sandwich and a glass of beer; The
waiter and his fellow-gueSts know from the ma
ture OF his orders for luncheon that the specula-
tor has become loser On the market; but losers
are so common that his reduced circumstances ex-
cite comment
Three spanish restaurants on Maiden Lane cater
to the SpantardS and Cubans In the great tobacco
luncheon hour with dark-featured, black-mus-
tached men, eating extremely tOrrid dishes dear
TO the palate OF the average Spaniard, frijoles
(beansl, tartialles (meal cakes and tomales, the
base Of which is hashed chicken. They are
baked in corn husks. Nearly every dish served In
these Spanish restaurants is hot with the little
peppers SO esteemed by the Spaniarus.
The Italian district has comparatively few res
taurants, and they do not begin brisk business
OF food very low but the quality is not so bad
as q novice would expect. The idea that every
Italian eats macaroni is erroneous. Residents OF
certain sections OF Italy eat rice instead OF maca-
rOni, and their idiOm for "Come and dine with
me" is 81 should be pleased to have you eat rice
with me-"
The Chinese eat little at the midday meal and
their luncheon restaurants on Mott and Pell
streets are much on the plan OF the country
pasts from the counters small, white sausage
filled with minced chicken meat is highly esteemed
by them as midday tidbit.
LADY LUNCHERs.
The women workers OF New York. as a rule,
carry their luncheons with them. There are only
two or three places down town extensively pa
tronzed by lady lunchers and they are the high
Salaried women OF the more prosperous houses.
One OF the best patrons or chop house on Frank
lin street, one door east OF Broadway, is lady OF
splendid form, who works at a nigh salary as a
tryer-on OF cloaks In one OF the large houses In
The guards and conductors Of elevated trains
have to eat their luncheons standing at their
posts and II Is amusing TO hear them try TO call
station and gulp down a sandwich IN the same
to lunch. They seize morSel OF food and eat as
they work at their cases. The hunger at midday
or day worker does not compare with the desire
for food at midnight OF night toiler. Printers on
morning papers are given time for a midnight
luncheon, and famous restaurant on Newspaper
row Is crowded with them at II o'clock pm. Two
OF the great newspapers Offices have lunch quar-
tiers attached to the composing rooms, where the
printers get wholesome food, Tor which they pay
In the dry goods district OF New York are great
number Of English chop-houses, where at the
luncheon hour cODgregate the statesmen and COM
mission brokers OF the trade. They eat expensive
dishes and are profitable customers in the busy
seasons, but when the dull trade OF June sets in
they order very mOdeStly and smoke and drink
spartngly. curious feature OF Pearl street is q
place Kept by person nicknamed Beefsteak John.
Me a19 coee Rivals IN his line ssne
up, and he made specially OF cheap steak and
onions. He has prospered so well that other Beef
steak Johns have sprung up over the city.
BOwERY RESTAURANT.
The Bowery is the paradise OF cheap restau-
rateurs and cheap eaters. One restaurant sells
meats at five cents, coffee and tea at Two cents a
cup, and other dishes proportionately cheap. The
restaurant keepers have a habit OF naming their
places after celebrated men, and the Boss Tweed
Jim Fisk and Parnell restaurants are rivals Tor
the cheap trade OF the Bowery. The Hebrew
quarter has many places we'll patroniZed at mid
day by orthodox Hebrews, who go there because
they know the flesh and fowl they eat has been
killed according to the law OF their religion. Dur
ing the Passover season many Gentiies patronize
these Hebrew eating-houses at the luncheon hour
to get the Passover bread and very good coffee
that they serve.
a high-Salaried chef and furnishes a very nice
meal TO its patrons free OF charge IL Is one or the
few first-claSS free-lunch places In New York that
have proven profitable, and among It's patrons are
eminent lawyers and well-tO-do tradesmen.
AMOS j. CUAAINoS
ii.
SUMNER CONES IN NIGHT.
Summer captures New York over night. No
man has ever been able to explain the phenome-
non or fix the date 1t comes like thief in the
night and on the following day 1t Is there. In Lon
don, where the day for grouse shooting Is set by
law, and in Paris, where the time Tor the summer
a Co.. Inan Nae1 ,z...